The farm and farmhouse

About Me

Hi! Im a wife in my low twenties, living on a farm in the Midwest. Just trying to make ends meet and save for our future as we remodel our old farmhouse, and stay out of debt.
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As of November 2018

Stressful Days

Car is broken. Timing chain major problem Father-in-Law thinks. Car is parked and not able to be driven in my work parking lot. Called the mechanic... $800 to fix it.

So I had to scramble to get insurance and plates on the Neon so I could drive it to work the next day.

I had to pay $611 for 6 months of insurance up front. I could have paid for only a month + a fee, but it was over $100 difference not counting the fee.

Of course I didnt have that much money on me, so I had to borrow $500 from my mother.

Then I have to get it titled and plated, and that cost $240.

I had put the propane bill on my credit card, and had the cash in the checking account to pay for it. But I had to use that money to pay for the plates. So now,

I have over $500 on the credit card.
I owe my mother $500.
I had to take $100 out of my EF.
I owe my grandpa $3,000.
My car is broken down in a parking lot and has to be fixed to the tune of $800.
I have to put $250 in my IRA before April 15th.

This is the most debt I have ever had. It is really stressing me out. I went from $0 debt to close to $5,000 in just a week or two.

Father in law is throwing around the idea of taking on the timing chain himself. It would only cost $200 for the parts. I am a little weary to let him do it.

Praying everything with work out, and I will be able to catch back up quickly.

5 Responses to “Stressful Days”

If FIL hasn't put a timing chain on before, I don't think I'd let him do it. I think it is a bit dangerous because of the tension on it.

Some things to consider: How much could you sell car for without timing chain, how much with? Can you wait to do the repair? Your mom probably can wait for her money. You can skip you Roth contribution...unless you already reported it on your tax return. Do you need to sell car to pay Grandpa? Will he wait on cash, too? Try to figure different scenarios and figure which item really needs to be tackled first. It will work out.

Deep breath. You are doing fine. A lot of things got thrown at you at once, but you can sort them out. The insurance and plates are paid for and you can drive to work. Everything else can wait, unless, as CCF said, you already reported your contribution. I think you've actually handled a difficult situation very well.

Yes. I already reported the contribution on the taxes to claim the savers credit. If worse comes to worse, I can take the money out of the EF on the last day and put it in the Roth, so I am not too worried about that.

I could NOT sell the care right now. Its not safe to even drive it at this point. Its not just a rattle anymore. Its a major problem. I need to sell the car to pay grandpa. Father-in-law has not done a timing chain before, but him and his brother would do it together, and his brother has done it several times. So I think they could do it. But I am just not sure. I cant wait too long to do the repair because like I said the car is parked at work, and I am sure they dont want it left there for much longer.

At this point I am going to pay down the credit card first, and put back the $100 I took out of my cushion. Then I will pay the Roth. After that I am not sure.

Husband will get an extra $150 of overtime this week, so that will help some.

Klarose....I have been where you are for three years. Robbing peter to pay paul....stressing...worrying....budgeting and re-budgeting.....and this on the heels of making well into six figures for many years....let me tell you somthing and please, take it to heart. TODAY IS THE TOMORROW YOU WORRIED ABOUT YESTERDAY. Triage your debt. Remove anything that will CHARGE you interest or cannot be written off at tax time. Openly speak with those you owe money to and be up front. Establish a plan with them and outline a backup plan as well. Continue to focus on each hurdle as a separate entity. And finally, WRITE YOUR PLAN DOWN IN BULLETIZED FORMAT. This allows you to physically check each accomplishment off as you achieve it. That, unto itself, is a great motivator and morale booster. My thoughts and prayers are with you.